A US Senator from Rhode Island said on Tuesday that FBI Director James Comey had given him assurances that on Wednesday, he would confirm whether or not the bureau is investigating contacts between the Trump campaign and Russia and "the scope" of that investigation.

Speaking to CNN, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse said that Comey had promised to him, and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, during a 2 March meeting that he would confirm or deny the investigation and "the scope of their Russia/Trump investigation because he had not been able to at that point say that there was one," the news service reported.

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Last week, Senators Whitehouse and Graham sent a letter to Comey and the Acting Deputy Attorney General, Dana Boente, asking for any evidence of claims President Donald Trump had made that he and Trump tower had been wiretapped by his predecessor, president Barack Obama.

At the time of the 2 March meeting, the two senators announced their own investigation into Russian efforts to influence the recent US election through the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism.

IBTimes UK contacted Senator Whitehouse's office for comment but did not receive a reply at the time of publication.

In a statement, they said: "Our goal is simple – to the fullest extent possible we want to shine a light on Russian activities to undermine democracy. While some of our efforts will have to be held behind closed doors due to security concerns, we also hope to have an open discussion before the American people about Russia's strategies to undermine democracy."

Trump's team has had a number of new questions about contact with Russia during the campaign raised in recent weeks. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was accused by some of lying under oath after it was revealed that he met twice with the Russia ambassador even though he assured a senate committee that he had had no contact with Russian officials.

James Comey Donald Trump